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1 | THIS SPREADSHEET IS NOT CURRENTLY BEING UPDATED. Please see the Washington Post's whip list | ||||||||
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3 | c | Additions/edits: @DavidNir | |||||||
4 | State | Senator | Stance | Quote(s) | Date | Source | |||
5 | Arizona | Mark Kelly | Not ruling it out | "When he's elected, Mark will consider how any changes to the way the Senate does business could help improve the lives of Arizonans." | 28-Jun-20 | Huffpost | |||
6 | Arizona | Kyrsten Sinema | Against | Sinema not only opposes getting rid of the 60-vote filibuster threshold for legislation, she wants to restore the supermajority requirement for presidential nominees that has been weakened by both parties. "They will not get my vote on [nuking the filibuster]," Sinema said .... "In fact, whether I'm in the majority or the minority I would always vote to reinstate the protections for the minority. … It is the right thing for the country." | 29-Oct-19 | Politico | TALLY | ||
7 | California | Dianne Feinstein | Not ruling it out | “Ideally the Senate can reach bipartisan agreement....But if that proves impossible and Republicans continue to abuse the filibuster by requiring cloture votes, I’m open to changing the way the Senate filibuster rules are used.” | 19-Mar-21 | New York Times | For | 28 | |
8 | California | Alex Padilla | For | Shifting from policy to procedure, Michaelson asked Padilla his stance on the Senate filibuster, a practice which many Democrats, including former President Barack Obama have called to be done away with. Padilla agreed that the practice, which allows a member to extend debate until 60 Senators vote to invoke cloture, should be discarded. | 23-Dec-20 | Fox 11 Los Angeles | Against | 3 | |
9 | Colorado | Michael Bennet | For | "I'm committed to making sure that (Minority Leader) Mitch McConnell can't obstruct the business of the American people again," Bennet said. | 24-Mar-21 | Colorado Politics | Not ruling it out | 18 | |
10 | Colorado | John Hickenlooper | Not ruling it out | "I would listen to any rule change. I certainly think the way the filibuster is being used now is a joke." | 28-Jun-20 | Huffpost | Unclear | 1 | |
11 | Connecticut | Richard Blumenthal | For | "I continually to advocate, not just reform, but abolishing it because I think it obstructs the majority," said Blumenthal. "At this moment, we need to get stuff done to meet the unparalleled pandemic and economic crisis that we face in this country." | 26-Jan-21 | CT Post | |||
12 | Connecticut | Chris Murphy | For | Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut said he favors reforming Senate procedure. But he wouldn't elaborate on how that happens. I don't think that it's consistent with the preservation of American democracy as it's used today, Murphy said. "There are lots of different possibilities to reform the filibuster...I think we need to focus on the elections first and then see where we are." | 5-Aug-20 | Business Insider | |||
13 | Delaware | Tom Carper | Against | Some Democratic senators still believe they can gather enough Republican support to keep the filibuster and legislate effectively, especially on job-creating measures like infrastructure funding. "These are bipartisan issues," said Senator Tom Carper. | 20-Aug-20 | New York Times | |||
14 | Delaware | Chris Coons | Not ruling it out | "I have long spoken in defense of the filibuster," Coons said. "What I've said was it — and this is very hypothetical — if Joe Biden is the president, if there is a Democratic majority, I won't stand by for four years, and allow every effort to make progress to be blocked." | 5-Aug-20 | Business Insider | |||
15 | Georgia | Jon Ossoff | Not ruling it out | "Has said he's open to eliminating the filibuster." | 28-Jun-20 | Huffpost | |||
16 | Georgia | Raphael Warnock | Not ruling it out | "Told HuffPost that they were still studying the issue." | 28-Jun-20 | Huffpost | |||
17 | Hawaii | Brian Schatz | For | "It's time to trash the Jim Crow filibuster." | 25-Feb-21 | Schatz statement | |||
18 | Hawaii | Mazie Hirono | For | "I would support getting rid of the filibuster to pass H.R.1. I do think we should look at filibuster reform first and go to the talking filibuster, which is what most Americans think about when they think of a filibuster." | 29-Mar-21 | MSNBC | |||
19 | Illinois | Dick Durbin | For | "I can tell you that's where I'm leaning. I will tell you, I have been frustrated for a hell of a long time because of this filibuster." | 21-Aug-20 | Yahoo News | |||
20 | Illinois | Tammy Duckworth | Not ruling it out | "I don't know how we return to where things were before both Harry Reid and Mitch McConnell decided to do the various versions of the nuclear option. I do think that it is pretty harmful when certain laws pass with a simple majority, because then folks in the minority don't have their voice. And our system is set up so that those in a minority should have a voice. But the question then is, should those folks have the ultimate blockage to keep the majority from moving forward? So I don't know where we are on that yet." | 16-Jul-20 | New York Times | |||
21 | Maine | Angus King | Not ruling it out | "As we enter this new Congress with a new president and a new Senate majority (barely), the question for me is how Mitch McConnell and his Republican colleagues will play their hand; if they are willing to work to find compromise and consensus on important initiatives (infrastructure, voting rights or immigration reform, for example), the importance of getting rid of the filibuster diminishes. If, on the other hand, they just say no, the necessity — and likelihood — of filibuster reform would only increase. That is to say, in large measure the outcome is in their hands." | 24-Mar-21 | Washington Post | |||
22 | Maryland | Ben Cardin | For | “I would be prepared to eliminate the filibuster, but I don’t think you have the votes in the Senate to do it,” Cardin said in an interview. “I’m trying to find a bipartisan buy-in to reforming the Senate. I think that’s far healthier.” | 15-Mar-21 | Washington Post | |||
23 | Maryland | Chris Van Hollen | For | "Americans should not be robbed of a living wage by archaic Senate rules and procedures—including the filibuster." | 26-Feb-21 | Van Hollen statement | |||
24 | Massachusetts | Elizabeth Warren | For | "That means when Democrats have the White House again, if Mitch McConnell tries to do what he did to President Obama, and puts small-minded partisanship ahead of solving the massive problems facing this country, then we should get rid of the filibuster." | 5-Apr-19 | CNN | |||
25 | Massachusetts | Ed Markey | For | "The filibuster must go," Sen. Ed Markey told WBUR recently. "It's something that's rooted in a racist past, and it's used today as a way of blocking the progressive agenda, which President Biden is proposing — [including] environmental justice, racial justice, economic justice." | 3-Feb-21 | WBUR | |||
26 | Michigan | Debbie Stabenow | Not ruling it out | Senate Dem Debbie Stabenow says Dems now need to have a serious discussion about nuking the filibuster — "there are really important things like voting rights that can't be done through reconciliation." | 6-Mar-21 | Statement to reporter | |||
27 | Michigan | Gary Peters | Not ruling it out | Several Democrats such as Sen. Gary Peters of Michigan said on Tuesday they were focused on winning the Senate in November and that they would "wait and see" on the filibuster question. | 5-Aug-20 | Business Insider | |||
28 | Minnesota | Amy Klobuchar | For | "I would get rid of the filibuster," Klobuchar says. "I have favored filibuster reform for a long time and now especially for this critical election bill." | 3-Mar-21 | Mother Jones | |||
29 | Minnesota | Tina Smith | For | "I believe that the filibuster should be abolished in all cases, not just for any particular piece of legislation." | 4-Mar-21 | Minneapolis Star-Tribune | |||
30 | Montana | Jon Tester | Not ruling it out | NR: So you could potentially be open now to getting rid of the legislative filibuster? Sen. Tester: "Well, look. I mean, I've always been open to everything. I didn't come here to not do anything. I came here to get things accomplished. And if people are willing to work together, I'm willing to work with them, and we'll get some stuff accomplished..I think the filibuster serves an important purpose, but I also think that if there's a lot of stonewalling that goes on, it doesn't leave me a lot of choice." | 22-Sep-20 | National Review | |||
31 | Nevada | Catherine Cortez Masto | For | U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) called to reform the legislative filibuster, calling specifically for the implementation of the "talking filibuster," which would require any Senator who wishes to filibuster – or block – legislation to do so by publicly speaking on and holding the Senate floor. | 9-Mar-21 | Cortez Masto statement | |||
32 | Nevada | Jacky Rosen | Not ruling it out | “I do not think we should fully eliminate the filibuster,” Rosen said in a statement provided by her office. “It’s one of the few things that we have left in the Senate that allows all voices to be heard. But I am open to looking at and discussing reform proposals, like the talking filibuster, so we can get back to talking to each other and effectively governing on behalf of the American people.” | 27-Mar-21 | Nevada Independent | |||
33 | New Hampshire | Jeanne Shaheen | For | "I think we should look at ways to reform the filibuster, but I don't think getting rid of it is the best approach." | 25-Mar-21 | CNN | |||
34 | New Hampshire | Maggie Hassan | For | New Hampshire's junior Democratic senator, Maggie Hassan, who faces a tough reelection bid next year, also has "concerns about eliminating the filibuster," a spokesperson said, though backs some reforms. | 25-Mar-21 | CNN | |||
35 | New Jersey | Bob Menendez | For | "Steve Sandberg, Menendez's spokesman, said the senator is supportive of reinstating the "talking filibuster" proposed by Biden" | 26-Mar-21 | northjersey.com | |||
36 | New Jersey | Cory Booker | For | "I don't think I can effectively make that argument of why we should preserve the filibuster at this moment in history, days before we see a decision being made that could so hurt voting rights and health care and LGBTQ rights and women's access to reproductive care and abortion care." | 23-Oct-20 | Atlantic | |||
37 | New Mexico | Ben Ray Lujan | For | "For me, my constituents supported me knowing that I support filibuster reform. And so I'm going to come here and hope that that's a tool that we can use." | 4-Mar-21 | Roll Call | |||
38 | New Mexico | Martin Heinrich | For | "The filibuster should be abolished or, at the very least, reformed to force senators to physically hold the floor to extend debate." | 18-Mar-21 | Heinrich statement | |||
39 | New York | Chuck Schumer | Not ruling it out | "Nothing's off the table." | 21-Jul-20 | Huffpost | |||
40 | New York | Kirsten Gillibrand | For | "I'm of the view that we should eliminate the filibuster despite all the risks," Gillibrand said. | 3-Mar-21 | The Telegraph | |||
41 | Ohio | Sherrod Brown | For | "We've got to eliminate the filibuster" | 10-Sep-20 | The Atlantic | |||
42 | Oregon | Ron Wyden | For | On the filibuster, Wyden said he supports a "talking filibuster" which requires Congress members to remain on the floor and continue to speak or else a vote may be called. "If Mitch McConnell is interested in obstructing for obstructing sake, then you have to act," Wyden said. | 16-Jan-21 | The Hill | |||
43 | Oregon | Jeff Merkley | For | "And if that means changing or abolishing the current Senate requirement for a supermajority to close debate and pass policy legislation—often referred to as a "filibuster"—then that is what we must do." | 29-Mar-21 | Portland Tribune | |||
44 | Pennsylvania | Bob Casey | For | "Our democracy is at stake here. I'm ready to work with my Republican colleagues, but should the 60-vote rule (filibuster) continue to be abused against widely popular policies, then we must eliminate – or at the very least reform – the filibuster." | 9-Apr-21 | Casey statement | |||
45 | Rhode Island | Jack Reed | Not ruling it out | "I'm focused on the Senate passing legislation that addresses the pandemic, the economy, our defense and our environment," said Senator Jack Reed, Democrat of Rhode Island. "The onus is on Senate Minority Leader McConnell. He can either be a constructive part of that effort or create a wall of partisan obstruction and further threaten the Senate's traditions." | 26-Jan-21 | New York Times | |||
46 | Rhode Island | Sheldon Whitehouse | Not ruling it out | "I suppose Republican intransigence could ultimately provoke me to that," said Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island, adding that it's premature to make a decision now. | 5-Aug-20 | Business Insider | |||
47 | Vermont | Patrick Leahy | Against | Taylor continued, "And so some of them are suggesting that the Senate should get rid of the legislative filibuster. What's your view of that?" "No, I think that -- I agree with Thomas Jefferson [who] said, you know, it's the saucer where things cool," Leahy responded. "What I want to do though is see us come back to voting on things." | 8-Nov-19 | C-SPAN | |||
48 | Vermont | Bernie Sanders | For | "We must pass a comprehensive agenda to guarantee the rights and dignity of everyone in this country. And that means, among other things, reauthorizing and expanding the Voting Rights Act, for which Congressman John Lewis put his life on the line. As President Obama said, if that requires us to eliminate the filibuster, then that is what we must do." | 30-Jul-20 | Sanders statement | |||
49 | Virginia | Mark Warner | Not ruling it out | "I am hopeful that the Senate can work together to address the enormous challenges facing the country without resorting to drastic measures like eliminating the filibuster." | 5-Feb-21 | Constituent letter | |||
50 | Virginia | Tim Kaine | For | "I'm very open to it. Look, I was governor of a state with two legislatures and everything is operated by simple majority. It works fine," | 25-Jun-20 | The Hill | |||
51 | Washington | Patty Murray | Not ruling it out | "We will see. If they don't, and they just continue to be a smaller and smaller constituency party that just says no to everything and who is willing to live under one loud man's tweets, then it's detrimental and we'll have to have to figure out how I move forward, how we as a country move forward, how I can best represent the interests and fight for what's important in Washington state." | 18-Feb-21 | KUOW | |||
52 | Washington | Maria Cantwell | Unclear | "Washington Sen. Maria Cantwell also has taken no public position on the filibuster" | 12-Oct-20 | Seattle Times | |||
53 | West Virginia | Joe Manchin | Not ruling it out | "If you want to make it a little bit more painful, make him stand there and talk, I'm willing to look at any way we can. But I'm not willing to take away the involvement of the minority." | 7-Mar-20 | Slate | |||
54 | Wisconsin | Tammy Baldwin | For | "Recently, the threat of filibuster has been used far too often and as a result political obstructionism in the United States Senate is now worse than it has ever been. The people of Wisconsin and our state's progressive tradition deserve better." | 22-Jan-13 | Baldwin statement | |||